Girl Next Door
by Ka-chan93
Summary: Once best friends, Bella and Edward are now bitter enemies. Will a music assignment show them what they've been denying, or will others get in the way? Rater T for safety. May become M. BEING REWRITTEN
1. Prelude & Encounters

**So, finally, here's the new Prologue/Chapter 1. Thank you all for being so patient with me. I'm going to try to update a lot faster this time.**

**Full Summary:**

Having grown up as neighbors, Bella and Edward were once the best of friends. They went through everything together: puberty, drama, even when Bella's mom walked out on Charlie, Jasper, and herself. As they grew older, Bella found herself falling more and more in love with Edward. In middle school, though, Edward decided that he would rather be Mr. Popular and date Bella's "perfect" cousin, Tanya. Edward cast Bella aside, leaving her heart shattered in thousands of ragged pieces. Now, they're seniors in high school, both of them getting ready to graduate in the spring. Things have happened. Edward is the Captain of the Soccer and Track teams, while Bella has shut herself off from everyone except Jasper and Alice. Will a project rekindle the friendship between the two-leading, perhaps, to something more-or will human nature get in the way?

**Prelude Soundtrack:**

Goodbye Love—The RENT Cast.

Candles—Hey Monday

**Chapter 1 Soundtrack:**

We Are Broken—Paramore

I Want to Hold Your Hand—Glee Cast (Beatles originally, but I prefer Chris Kolfer's version :3)

**Disclaimer: I do not own any copyrighted materials mentioned in this fanfiction. They all belong to their respective owners.**

**

* * *

**

I pushed back all doubts as I walked through the Seattle Airport towards my terminal. This was not the time to second guess my decisions.

Jasper walked quietly next to me, and I knew that he was _definitely_ not happy with my decision to leave; but this was how it had to be. I couldn't take everything anymore.

"You don't have to do this, Bella," Jasper said quietly as we reached the line to board the plane. "Don't let him drive you to this."

"This is what I want, Jasper-regardless of what _he_ did," I replied, giving Jasper a sad smile. "I know you hate this, Jasper, but this is what I need to do. He was what kept me here, and I have to explore who I can be without him."

"I still wish you didn't have to leave to find yourself. I mean, he's leaving in a couple months, so why not stay?"

"Because I need him _out_ of my life. _Completely_," I said, sighing. "There's too many memories here, Jasper."

"Alice is going to be devastated."

My brows furrowed in pain. "I know you want to tell her, Jasper, but she's _his_ sister, and no matter how many times she says that she can keep a secret, there's too much risk of her telling him-even by accident," I said sadly. I wanted Alice to know, but I didn't want _him _to know. It was killing me to see Jasper like this, but it was what had to happen.

"...I understand," Jasper said reluctantly. I stepped towards him and pulled him into a hug. He held me tightly against his chest, and I knew that I was going to miss my big brother.

"I'll miss you, Cowboy" I whispered, tears starting to pool in my eyes.

"I'll miss you too, Jellybean." I giggled at the use of my childhood nickname. "Dad would have been proud of you."

I only nodded in response.

"I love you, Bella," he whispered in my ear.

"I love you too, Jasper," I whispered in reply, squeezing him one last time before releasing him and handing the stewardess my ticket. "Bye."

"Bye."

I gave Jasper another sad smile before turning and walking down the walkway and into the plane. I was walking away from everything, but it was what I needed to do; I needed to start over.

I needed a life without _him _in it.

* * *

**Chapter 1. **

Another typical cold January morning in Forks.

I shivered beneath my covers, hesitant to get out from underneath them. Why did it have to be so freaking cold here?

I reluctantly got out of bed and made my way to the bathroom, almost tripping sleepily over my own feet in the process. After a long, warm shower, I wrapped myself in a towel and blow-dried my hair. I made my way back to my room and pulled on a blue, long-sleeved thermal shirt, a pair of black skinny jeans, and a black jacket. I slipped on my black, high top converse and went downstairs, making a couple pieces of toast before grabbing my bag and heading out to my car, ready to head off to school

The ride itself was petty short, but for how small Forks was, there a quite a bit of traffic. When I got to school, I stepped out of the car and shivered in the cold, dry winter air, pulling my coat tighter in an attempt to keep warm. Even though I had lived here my entire life, I just couldn't get used to the winter mornings in Forks.

I shied away into my scarf as a blast of cold air hit my face. I adjusted my scarf to cover the bottom half of my face as I started my trek towards the main building of Forks High School.

Damn; I hated winter.

Once safe inside the school, I loosened my scarf and lowered the hood of my jacket, thankful that the school had a working heating system.

I made my way toward the library, one of my safehavens in the school, the other being the choir room. It was one of the places I went when I need some peace, quiet, and time alone.

I grabbed a table in the back of the library and took a seat, pulling out my copy of _Pride and Prejudice_. Unfortunately, it was exceedingly difficult to focus on my book when all I could hear was the quiet moaning of a couple making out behind one of the bookshelves.

I snapped my book closed and stalked over to the shelf, irritated.

"Can you guys cut it out? _Some _ people are trying to concentrate!" I said harshly. I wished I hadn't said anything, though, when a very familiar girl stepped out from behind the shelf, her red hair mussed.

"Well, no one cares about you, now do they, Bella?" she said, hands on her hips as she stared me down.

I shifted uncomfortably, not really wanting to deal with the upcoming confrontation.

"And people don't want to hear you guys making out, Tanya," I said, opting to say 'you guys' instead of the name of the guy she was making out with, even though I knew exactly who it was.

Tanya stood there, glaring at me with her icy-blue eyes. Her hair seemed to transform into fire as I saw her anger rise. She opened her mouth to speak, but before she could say anything, a pale hand with long fingers gently grasped her shoulder, shifting her attention away from me momentarily.

"Leave it, Tanya; she's not worth it."

I felt my heart stop at the familiar voice. The voice which had once spoken gently towards me, but now spoke nothing but cruel words to me.

A guy stepped out from behind the shelf. His hand never left Tanya's shoulder as he stepped around to stand next to her. His copper colored hair was as messy as ever, and his emerald eyes seemed to smolder even more than they used to. But his eyes were colder than they used to be, and I found myself wondering what happened to the gentle boy who used to be my friend.

"You're right, Edward," Tanya said as she smiled up at him. Then she turned back to me with a glare. "She'd probably just start whining to Jasper, anyway."

I kept my gaze cold and aloof, trying to keep the hurt I felt from reaching my eyes. Edward didn't need to know that I was still hurting.

"Just keep your private life to yourself, Tanya," I said, before turning and walking away from them. I could feel Edward's gaze on me as I grabbed my things and left the library, opting to go to the choir room as there were still 20 minutes before the bell rang.

Once in the choir room, I dropped my things on the floor and walked over to the piano. I played a few chords before I started playing a familiar song, singing as I played.

_"I am outside_

_And I've been waiting for the sun_

_And with my wide eyes_

_I've seen words that don't belong_

_My mouth is dry_

_With words I cannot verbalize_

_Tell me why we live like this"_

I thought about Edward as I sang, and what we'd been through—what he'd done to me. He'd thrown me aside with no regard to my feelings. My best friend had abandoned me for vanity and popularity.

"_Tower over me_

_Your arms like towers_

_Tower over me_

_Yeah!"_

I thought about how many times I needed Edward's comfort, but he was never there. There was no way I could go to him when he had completely forgotten about me.

"'_Cause we are broken!_

_What must we do to restore_

_Our innocence_

_And oh the promice we adored?_

_Give us life again_

'_cause we just wanna be whole!"_

I found myself choking back tears and unable to play the rest of the song. Even though he wanted nothing to do with me, I still felt unbelievably connected to him. It was like not matter how much we tried to pull away, we just couldn't get rid of each other.

I started playing the piano again, this time sticking to instrumental music. I started with Yiruma's _River Flows in You_, moving on to Debussy's _Claire de Lune_.

Before I knew it, the bell rang, and I gathered my things and headed to my British Lit class, where we were reading one of my favorite plays: Shakespeare's Hamlet. I was a huge Shakespeare fan, and I had several of his works at home.

After English, I headed to homeroom, before heading to Pre-Calculus Honors—My least favorite class. I had never been very good at math, and it didn't help that my teacher wasn't very good. Luckily, I had my best friend Alice to help me out.

Alice was already in her seat when I got to class. Her short, black hair was sticking out everywhere, and she was wearing a black shirt and a short, pink skirt. Something about her reminded me of a fairy, and how hyper she was didn't help.

"Hey!" she said cheerily as I took my seat next to her.

"Hey," I replied tiredly, still upset from my run-in with Edward.

"Wow. What crawled up your ass and died?" Alice asked, quirking an eyebrow.

One thing you need to know about Alice is that despite how sweet and innocent she looks, she has absolutely NO filter.

"I had a run-in with Tanya this morning...and your brother."

That's right; Edward was Alice's brother. Not by blood, though. The Cullens had adopted Alice when she was eight, right after her parents—Edward's aunt and uncle—died. I was closer to Edward, but Alice and I steadily grew closer, and when Edward abandoned me, she stayed by my side.

"Ugh, what did that fucktard do now?" Alice asked exasperatedly.

"Well, I got annoyed because I could hear him and Tanya making out in the library, and just when Tanya was about to get on my case about interrupting them, Edward told her that I wasn't worth it." My voice grew quiet by the end of my sentence, and I felt the sadness from earlier sink in again.

"Fuck! He's gonna get a piece of my mind after school!" Alice exclaimed, her anger obvious on her face.

"Alice, that's not nece—"

"Of course it's necessary!" She said, cutting me off. "You can't let him push you around like this, Bella. You deserve so much more—especially from him. You need to let him know how badly he's hurt you. You know Edward better than anyone—even now—and you know he hates hurting people. He only does it to keep up appearances." Alice was ranting by that point, and I had to shush her as the teacher started class.

After pre-cal, Alice and I had lunch in our usual spot outside, underneath a huge tree. Alice ranted about Edward some more before the bell rang, signaling that it was time for my favorite class;

Choir.

Singing was my form of expression, so choir was obviously my favorite class. Alice was in the class too, which made it even better, The only downside was that Edward was in the class too.

Alice and I made our way to choir, all the while discussing what we tought our new project would be. All we knew was that it was a partnered project, it involved performing, and—if they were good enough—they'd be performed at the talent show in a few weeks.

As always, Edward, Tanya, and their little gang—composed of Tanya's sisters Carmen and Irina Denali, and Mike Newton—were late for class.

"Now that everyone's here," Mrs. Nicks, the choir teacher, said, glaring at Edward and his gang. "I can finally reveal the final project for this semester, seeing as the semester ends in two weeks." There were a few 'woots' from students who weren't returning to choir for the next semester.

"This semester, the final project is this: you and your partner—who I choose!—" there were groans from many students. "—will choose a song that describes your relationship with each other, and you'll perform it for the class. Here are the groups..." She started listing partners, starting with Alice and Mike Newtion; Alice was _not_ happy about that. I tuned out Alice's muttering as I listened to Mrs. Nicks, waiting for her to call my name. Tanya was paired with Tyler Crowley, which pissed her off. Of course, Tanya wasn't happy about being separated from her _beloved _boyfriend. Finally, she called my name.

"Isabella Swan and...Edward Cullen."

"_WHAT_?" Edward and I both exclaimed at the same time, both of us rising from our seats.

* * *

**So, what do you think of the first new chapter? Better? Worse? Please let me know. As you can see, I deleted all of the other chapters so that I can just start over, and so that you don't get confused when you read this and the situations are different.**

**Please review!**

**~KJ**


	2. Partners, and Jasper, and Gran OH MY!

**I hope you all are enjoying this version as much as the old version so far.**

**Here's chapter 2. **

**I DO NOT OWN**

**Soundtrack:**

1. Hurt-Christina Aguilera

2. You've Got a Friend-Carole King

**Well, enough of that. ONWARDS! **

* * *

I stared at Mrs. Nicks in shock, not wanting to believe what she'd just said.

"Mrs. Nicks, I can't work with Edward," I said, hopeful that she wouldn't ask for any explanation.

"And I _WON'T_ work with Swan," Edward said, and I flinched slightly at how harsh his voice was. No one noticed, though.

"Miss Swan, Mr. Cullen; you two are my best students, so it would be logical that I would pair you two together. With both of your piano skills, and your guitar skills—not to mention both of your singing abilities—I expect nothing less than excellence from you two." Mrs. Nicks stared us down, and I knew there was no point in arguing.

"But Swan and I—"

"This conversation is _over_, Mr. Cullen," Mrs. Nicks said, effectively cutting Edward off and ending the argument. "Everyone join your partners and begin working."

Edward sat back down and slumped into his chair, clearly not happy about being paired with me. Seeing as it was obvious that he wasn't going to move to my table, I grabbed my things and moved to the now vacant seat next to Edward. I could feel Tanya glaring at me, obviously not happy about her boyfriend working with her 'stupid cousin'.

Edward and I sat in silence for a moment, before I felt my irritation rise. "Okay, let's get this over with," I said, pulling out my notebook and a pencil. "Any ideas for songs?"

"How about 'We Hate You, Please Die' from Scott Pilgrim?" he asked, not even looking my way.

"Cute," I said humorlessly, glaring at him. "Edward, we have to take this seriously."

"I am," he said, sounding almost like he was whining. He reminded me of a little kid who wasn't getting what he wanted.

"So, you hate me that much?"

Even though I'd said it, I couldn't look at him when his head snapped up to look at me, shocked at what I'd said. Sure, we acted like we hated each other, but we'd never actually _said_ that we did.

"Bella-"

"Forget it!" I said, cutting him off.

He was quiet for a minute. "We could always do one of our old ones from when we were little," he finally suggested.

"I guess," an automated reply to buy me time. I could not think of a reason why I should say no. One that would make Edward drop the subject without question, at least. "But we really need to think it through."

"Which means we probably need to meet outside of class."

My hand paused above my paper, shaking for a split second.

"Fine," I said simply. Edward and I brainstormed a little before the bell finally rang, and I couldn't be happier...

...until I remembered what my next class was.

AP Biology...with Edward as my partner. I could only sigh in frustration. Thoughts from a time past were kicked up in the dust of my mind; memories I ached to tie with more newer ones of a similar vein.

_**FLASHBACK (3rd Person POV)**_

_A 12-year-old Bella sat at the piano, picking at the notes aimlessly. Today was the day. September 13th. Not only was it her birthday, but it was also _that _day; the day when _she _left. _

_There was a knock on the door, and a 12-year-old Edward stuck his head inside._

"_Hey, Bella," He said with a smile, but Bella could see the underlying sadness. Sadness for her. He had been there with her when _she_ left._

"_Hey, Edward."_

_Edward frowned at the dead sound that was Bella's voice. He came into the room, closed the door again behind him, and walked over to sit next to Bella on the piano bench. He started playing a song-one that he and Bella knew very well._

"_When you're down and troubled_

_And you need some loving care_

_And nothing, nothing is going right_

_Close your eyes and think of me_

_And soon I will be there_

_To brighten up even your darkest night"_

_Bella joined in with a harmony, smiling at the song._

"_You just call out my name_

_And you know wherever I am_

_I'll come running to see you again_

_Winter, spring, summer or fall_

_All you have to do is call_

_And I'll be there_

_You've got a friend"_

_They didn't get further than that before Bella hugged him, tears beginning to fall from her eyes in memory of _her_._

_**END FLASHBACK (Back to Bella POV)**_

That was the last time he and I sang together.

I got to the AP Bio room and took my seat, sadly humming "You've Got a Friend" under my breath as I stared out the window, only vaguely aware that Edward took his seat next to me.

Luckily, we weren't doing much in class that day except watching a movie. Mr. Banner was a pretty amusing teacher, and he decided-seeing as we were studying osmosis-to show us Osmosis Jones.

When the bell rang, I quickly packed up my things and got ready to leave, but got stopped by Edward on my way out.

"So, do you want to get together later today to work on our project?" he asked nonchalantly while leaning up against the door frame, effectively blocking my exit.

"As much as I would _love_ to," I started sarcastically as I tried to push past him. "I can't. Gran is coming over tomorrow." I saw Edward visibly flinch at the mention of my Gran; I could understand why.

He stood up straight, blocking my way again. "Well, we need to get together soon."

"I know," I said, trying to push past him once more. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to get home to get the house ready."

Edward gave me one last unreadable look before stepping out of the way, allowing me to leave. I didn't say goodbye; I felt no need.

When I got home, I immediately started cleaning up, only taking a break to fix dinner. I was in the middle of cooking the spaghetti when I heard the door open and close.

"Where's my Jellybean?"

I felt myself smile as I turned down the heat on the stove and went out into the living room to greet the person.

"Jasper!" I exclaimed as I hugged him, almost knocking both of us over. "I didn't know you were coming home this weekend!"

"Neither did I, until dad called and said that he needed me to come over and watch you for the weekend."

I frowned. "I'm 18. I don't need to be babysat. I'm old enough to take care of myself," I said, pouting. Then it struck me. "Does that mean-"

"That dad is bailing on dinner with Gran?" Jasper said, finishing my sentence. "Yup."

I scoffed. "Typical," I muttered, heading back into the kitchen.

"Hey," Jasper said, following me into the kitchen. "If it makes it any better, it's because they need his help on a huge case in Seattle. There's some serial killer or something, and they're recruiting all the police chiefs within a certain mile radius."

"Alright," I mumbled, still upset about dad bailing. "I hope you're hungry, Jasper; I'm making spaghetti."

"Yum!" Jasper said, hugging me before heading back out into the living room. I could hear the sounds of a baseball game on TV as I got back to dinner.

Afterwards, I said good night to Jasper and headed up to my room. I changed into my Victoria's Secret pajamas (which Alice had forced me to buy) which consisted of a slim, white t-shirt and a pair of blue shorts. I settled onto my bed with my laptop and worked on my essay for English on the characters in Macbeth.

A lot of people at Forks High thought I was a nerd. And the truth? I was. I was a HUGE nerd. I watched/read science fiction all the time. And the fact that I wore glasses didn't help at all. That was why Alice had gotten me contacts. But personally, I preferred my glasses.

Finishing my essay, along with my math and AP Bio homework, I put all my homework and pulled out my guitar, deciding to play something.

I played a few random things before getting bored. I couldn't seem to find inspiration. Frustrated, I shoved the guitar away and got up from the bed. I made my way to the window seat, grabbing a book, and settled down.

I never noticed the familiar pair of emerald-green eyes staring at me from the next house.

**EPOV (HOLY CRAP! FIRST EPOV! THANK YOU ANGEL!)**

The days just seem to keep getting better. Today in particular seemed steeped in the past, teachers dancing to unseen strings of a puppet-master intent to unsettle me. Perhaps he was chuckling in glee at his success. Least to say, it was relief to finally be home to the quiet; to recuperate and rest not only my aching emotions but my sore wallet as well-Tanya cost more trouble than I thought nowadays.

Stepping out of my car in a cool breeze, I had to pause, catching myself on a detail next door; a familiar motorcycle was sitting outside. Jasper was home. Jasper Swan, Bella's-

No.

Running a rough trail through my hair, I strode to my house and settled in, determined to be devoid of the curiosity that grew from familiarity. Homework and then dinner, homework and then dinner, homework and then dinner.

Neither proved much use. Homework was not as engaging as I needed it to be; the readings and work-ups being more inviting to mental wanderings than I was comfortable with. Dinner proved even less helpful-I was so caught up in trying to filter my thoughts that I could not think of anything. I ended up eating leftover lasagna, the actions automatic and unmotivated.

Unmotivated and uninspired, bleeding into the guitar that had wandered into my hands at some insignificant point. The chords reflected the deadpan melody that was me, nevermind the fact that I had only recently started learning. Desperate for something to entertain my thoughts without leading me down unwanted lanes, I meditated; I focused on breathing. Deep breath in for five beats, hold one beat, exhale for five beats.

I waited until I had done this long enough to calm down, until the chords came naturally. It took me three more times playing the same set before I recognized what it was.

"You've Got A Friend" rang out again and again. The part I'm certain Bella was humming in class today. I threw down the instrument on my bed, pressing the heel of my hands to my eyebrows as if to push the Bella figment from my mind.

A pitiful growl and stomp later, I caught sight of a bright spot amongst the darkness that was the outside. Bella. She was sitting at her window seat in clothing more revealing than anything I'd ever seen her wear (besides a bathing suit, of course), concentrating on a book laid out in her lap. Her hair had been tamed away from her face into a ponytail, giving a spotlight to the glasses I had so missed.

A pause in breath, two beats, and the heel of my hands were back to my brow. Tomorrow could not come soon enough.

**BPOV**

I didn't get much sleep that night...probably had something to do with falling asleep on the window seat. A good thing was that I woke up early, and had extra time to get the house ready for Gran's arrival.

Jasper emerged from his old bedroom around 10, woken up by the sounds of me cleaning up in the kitchen. I made him some quick breakfast before making him help with the cleaning, much to his distaste.

By about three, we had finally gotten the house cleaned up, and after starting dinner, I went upstairs to shower and get ready.

I curled my hair after my shower, and I put on as little makeup as I could get away with. I pulled on a white, almost Victorian-style dress that reached just above my knees **(picture on website)**, along with a pair of simple, white ballet flats.

I quickly made my way back downstairs and into the kitchen to finish up dinner. Moving the spoon through the pasta, rhythmic circles, it occurred to me how surreal and distant everything felt. The stress of today seemed of another dimension, a realistic nightmare that was slowly fading away.

As I was finishing the lasagna, I heard a knock at the door. I yelled for Jasper to get it, which he begrudgingly did. Soon, I heard the familiar aged sound of Gran's voice telling Jasper to tuck in his shirt. I yelled my hellos to her from the kitchen, telling her that dinner was nearly ready. I took the lasagna out of the oven to cool, and went to set the table while I waited for it to cool a little bit. Gran had told me that she had invited a few people-three, in fact-so I needed to set it for a total of six people.

I wondered who Gran invited. No doubt, she invited Tanya. She had always favored Tanya over me (just like everyone else) so she would make sure she was here so that she could tell me how I "need to be more like Tanya".

I heard another knock at the door and, seeing as Jasper was busy entertaining Gran, I went to open it, though I wished I hadn't.

As expected Tanya was there, looking as if she had better things to do. Alice was there also, but I figured Gran had invited her because she and I had become best friends. But neither of them were what caused me to want to scream, slam the door, and run upstairs.

Edward.

* * *

**So, what do you think? As good as version 1? Please review-even if you didn't read the original version. I really want to know what you think; what you like, what you don't, etc.**

**Thanks for reading!**

**~KJ**


End file.
